Mortgage rates remain near lows

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WASHINGTON, March 8 (UPI) -- Average U.S. mortgage rates remain at or near historic lows in the most recent week, the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. said Thursday.

Average rates for 15-year fixed rate loans hit and all-time low, dropping from 3.17 percent to 3.13 percent with 0.8 point, Freddie Mac said.

In the same week of 2011 the average rate for 15-year loans stood at 4.15 percent.

Rates for 30-year contracts dropped from 3.9 percent to 3.88 percent with 0.8 point for the week. A year earlier, 30-year mortgage rates averaged 4.88 percent.

Five-year adjustable rate mortgages averaged 2.81 percent for the week with an average 0.7 point, down from last week's rate of 2.83 percent. A year earlier, five-year adjustable rate contracts averaged 3.73 percent.

One year Treasury-indexed adjustable mortgage rates rose in the week from 2.72 percent to 2.73 percent with 0.6 point. A year ago, rates for these loans averaged 3.21 percent.

In effect, with rates at or near historic lows and home prices declining, "the typical family had more than double the income needed to purchase a median-priced home in January," Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist Frank Nothaft said.